Liner for incontinent pants

ABSTRACT

A removable and washable liner for incontinent pants in the form of an essentially seamless flattened tubular sleeve formed from a porous hydrophobic knitted fabric enclosing one or more layers of an hydrophilic material, the hydrophobic sleeve acting as a barrier to prevent discharged body fluids absorbed by the enclosed hydrophilic material from wicking into contact with the wearer&#39;&#39;s body on its inner surface and with the enclosing pants on its outer surface, yet the liner, due to the porosity and tubular construction of the sleeve, being readily washable and free from obstructions which would retain or inhibit the removal of absorbed fluids during washing.

nited States Patent 1191 Gamm et al. Aug. 13, 1974 [5 LINER FORINCONTINENT PANTS 3,720,212 3/1973 Kaupin 128/288 [75] Inventors: PaulB. Gamm, Cincinnati, Ohio;

Przma ExammerCharles F. Rosenbaum Billy C. Clare Cahfomla Attomg Agent,or FirmAlbert E. Strasser; John W.

[73] Assignee: Jung Products, Inc., Cincinnati, M l ill St l H, F t

Ohio

22 Filed: July 17, 1972 ABSTRACT [21] APPL 272 4 A removable andwashable liner for incontinent pants in the form of an essentiallyseamless flattened tubular sleeve formed from a porous hydrophobicknitted fab- U.S. Cl- .l ri e lo ing one or more layers of an ma- [51]Int. Cl. A6lf 13/16 tel-i3], the hydrophobic Sleeve acting as a barrierto [58] Field of Search 128/287, 288, 289, 290 prevent dischargedbody flid absorbed by the closed hydrophilic material from wicking into contactReferences Clted with the wearers body on its inner surface and withUNITED STATES PATENTS the enclosing pants on its outer surface, yet theliner, 2,964,040 l2/l960 Ashton eta] 128/290 R due to the P y andtubular Construction Of the 3,237,625 3/1966 Johnson 128/288 Sleeve,being readily washable and free from obstruc- 3,460,535 8/1969 Behna128/288 tions which would retain or inhibit the removal of ab- 3,489,l49l/l970 Larson 128/288 sorbed fluids during washing. 3,599,638 8/1971Rickard l28/288 3,613,687 10/1971 Kennedy 128/288 2 Claims, 3 DrawmgFlgures BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Numerous forms of incontinent pantshave hitherto been proposed to retain discharged body fluids. :In theirsimplest form, such pants may comprise a ,diaper formed from one or morelayers of a material which will readily absorb the discharged fluids.Similarly, one or more layers of an absorptive material have beenutilized as a liner for a garment which is impervious to the bodyfluids, thereby preventing the absorbed fluids from wetting the wearersclothing, bed-clothing, or the like. In order to prevent the absorbedfluids from remainingin contact with the wearersbody, it'has also beenproposed to surface the side of the liner in contact with thewearersbody with a hydrophobic material, such a knitted fabric formedfromnon-absorptive fibers, which permits thefluids to flow through theknit ted fabric for absorption by the underlying absorptive material,thereby maintaining a relatively dryand nonirritating surface in contactwith-the body.

All of the prior art arrangements are, however, subject to variousdisadvantages, particularly intheirability to be washed. For example, alinercomposed of an inner ply of a knitted hydrophobic .fabricand one ormore outer plies of an absorptive fabric .is usually formed by wrappingthe edgesoftheplies ,withaibinding tapeand stitching-the.pliestogether.,Unless a-bind- 1 ing is .used, the edges of the ,plies will readily@fray ,and the stitching will unravel. Such binding, and even thestitching itself, provide obstructions which will retain or inhibit theremoval of the absorbed :fluids during washing. Since the bodyfluidsprovidean excellentculture medium to promote bacterial growth,complete removal of the body-fluids during washing is essential ifcontamination is to be prevented. ln addition, such edge bindings arerelatively coarse and hard and hence are irritating to the wearers skin,particularly when wet.

It will also be evident that if the linerincludes an impervious outerply, thorough washing and rinsing is further inhibited by the imperviousmaterial. Consequently, heretofore the various forms of incontinentpants and their liners have either compromised washability or havesacrificed fluid containment. If, for example, an absorptive liner iscovered on its inner surface only with a protective layer of a knittedmaterial which is hydrophobic, the liner nonetheless wets thesurrounding outer garment, .with the result that both the liner and theouter garment must be changed. Even if the liner is provided with animpervious outer cover, the absorbed fluids will wick through the edgebindings and wet the outer garment, again necessitating changing of boththe liner and the outer garment. Usually, where the outer garment isformed from a liquid impervious material, such asa nylon fabric coatedon its inner surface with a vinyl plastic, the garment willbe lined onits inner surface with a layer of flannel or other material which willcontact the wearers body; and when wicking occurs, the flannel liningwillbe wetted, again posing a laundering problem.

In contrast to the foregoing, the instant invention provides a linerwhich effectively prevents wicking and hence leakage of the containedbody fluid, yet the liner is readily washable with the assurance ofessentially complete removal of urine and other contained body wastes.

RESUME OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, the linercomprises an elongated seamless tubularsleeve adapted to be'detachablysecured to the inner surface of the outer garment, the liner sleevecontaining one or more layers of a hydrophilic material extending thefull length of the sleeve.

The tubular sleeve is preferably of a length to extend from theuppermost front edge of the outer garment to the uppermost rear edgethereof, and of a width to comfortably pass between the wearers legs.The tubular sleeve is in flattenedcondition and the enclosed hydrophilicmaterial willbe of a width to lie essentially flat within the confinesof the flattenedsleeve.

Being in the form of a seamless tube surrounding the enclosed layers ofhydrophilic material, no binding tapes or stitching is required alongthe side edges of the liner; andwhile the opposite end edges of thesleeve are preferably bound and stitchedto close the ends of the sleeveand bind together the end edges of the juxtaposed layers, such bindingswill lie in the area of the vwearers waist and-hence as remoteaspossible from the normal area of containment of the body fluids.

Preferably, the tubular sleeve will be formed from a double knit wovenfabric having a sufficiently open mesh 'weave .to permit the fluids toreadily pass therethrough. Single knit woven fabrics also may be em-,ployed,ialtho,ugh the double knits are .preferreddue '10 theirincreased thickness which increases theiba'rrier forming properties ofthe sleeve. Excellent results have been achieved using knitted fabricsmade from hydro- ;phobic yarns, such as olefin, nylon, Dacron, Orlon,polyester and the like, all of which fibers provide the desiredhydrophobic characteristics. The inner hydrophilic plies are preferablyformed from cotton fabrics,

such as flannel, the so-called double nap flannels being preferred.Alternatively, the hydrophilic material may comprise hydrophilic foam,which is a synthetic sponge-like material available in sheet form.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front view of a typical outergarment incorporating a liner in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the inner surface of the outer garmentwith the liner attached.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken along the line 3-3of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring first to FIGS. 1 and2, there is illustrated an essentially conventional outer garment l, inthe nature of detachable diaper pants having front and rear body Theopposite side edges of the front body panel 2 are bound by strips ofbinding material, indicated at 11 and 12; and similarly, the oppositeside edges of rear body panel 3 is provided with binding strips 14 and15. Snap fastener elements 16 are arranged at spaced apart intervalsalong theopposite side edge of front body panel 2, and mating snapfastener elements 17 are provided along the opposite side edge of rearbody panel 3, the sets of snap fasteners, when engaged, forming the bodysurrounding garment illustrated in FIG. 1.

The material from which the outer garment is formed does not constitutea limitation on the invention, although preferably it will comprise anessentially impervious outer covering 17, as seen in H0. 3, formed froma non-fibrous film or from a woven fabric, such as nylon, coated with avinyl or other material which renders the covering impervious to fluids.Such covering may be unlined, although preferably it will be lined witha layer of flannel 18 or other soft material which will protect thewearers skin from direct contact with the impervious covering. It is tobe understood that numerous modifications may be made in the outergarment without departing from the spirit and purpose of the inventionwhich has to do with the liner which is associated with the outergarment.

As will be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3, the liner, which is indicatedgenerally at 19, comprises an elongated seamless tubular sleeve 20 whichis preferably of a length to extend from the front waistband portion tothe rear waistband portion 6 of the outer garment, as will be clearlyevident from FIG. 2. The width of the liner will be preferablysubstantially equal to the width of the crotch 4 when the liner sleeveis in essentially flattened condition. The liner sleeve is formed from aseamless tube ofa knitted fabric having an open mesh weave which rendersit porous and permits fluids to readily flow therethrough. Double knitfabrics are preferred due to their added thickness, although single knitfabrics may be readily employed. The yarn from which the sleeve is madeis of essentially hydophobic character, being woven from olefin fibers,nylon, Dacron. Orlon, polyester fibers or the like, all of which are ofhydrophobic character.

One or more layers of a highly absorptive or hydrophilic material, suchas the layers 21 and 22 illustrated in FIG. 3, are enclosed within thesleeve 20. These layers will be formed from a material such as flannel,preferably a double napped flannel, or they may be formed from a sheetof hydrophilic foam, which is a spongeline synthetic cellular material.The number of layers of lining material does not constitute a limitationon the invention and one or more layers may be employed, depending uponthe desired absorbency.

The layer or layers of lining material preferably will extend the fulllength of the tubular sleeve 20 and will have a width substantiallyequal to the width of the outer sleeve.

The opposite end edges of the liner are bound and stitched, as indicatedat 23 and 24, so that the inner layer or layers of absorptive materialare joined to the surrounding sleeve. Sets of snap fasteners, indicatedat 25, are provided to secure the ends of the liner to the waistlineportions 5 and 6 of the outer garment. In order to avoid twisting orroping of the inner layers,

particularly during washing, it is preferred to provide transverse linesof stitching 26 and 27 at approximately the opposite ends of the crotcharea to hold the absorbent layers in place within the sleeve. Preferablythe thread used for the lines of stitching will be formed fromhydrophobic fibers.

As should now be evident, a liner formed in accordance with theinvention provides a self-contained unit in which the absorbent materialis completely surrounded and enclosed within a barrier sleeve which iseffectively free from obstructions throughout its length which wouldpermit undesirable wicking of contained fluids. Yet the liner may bereadily washed with the assurance that all contained fluids will beremoved. The tubular barrier provides a non-absorbent and henceessentially dry surface for contact with the wearer's body. and at thesame time the surface in contact with the outer garment is protectedfrom wetting by the contained fluids. It will be evident thatmodifications may be made in the invention without departing from itsspirit and purpose. For example, while snap fasteners are preferred tosecure the liner to the outer garment, other fastening means may beemployed, as for example, a Velcro type fastener may be used. Similarly,the edge bindings at the opposite ends of the liner may be secured otherthan by stitching, as for example by heat sealing where the nature ofthe fabrics permits them to be bonded together. Other modifications willundoubtedly occur to the worker in the art upon reading thisspecification, and it is not intended that the invention be limitedother than in the manner set forth in the claims which follow.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. In a garment for incontinent persons, a unitary liner adapted to beattached to the inner surface of the garment to extend from front torear throughout the crotch area, said liner consisting essentially of anelongated, longitudinally seamless, porous tubular sleeve formed from ahydrophobic material, and at least one layer ofa hydrophilic materialwholly contained within and surrounded by said tubular sleeve, saidtubular sleeve being in flattened condition with the layer ofhydrophilic material lying in essentially flat condition within saidflattened sleeve and substantially coextensive therewith, whereby saidporous hydrophobic sleeve permits body fluids to pass therethrough forabsorption by said enclosed layer of hydrophilic material and at thesame time acts as an enclosing barrier effective to prevent thedischarge of the contained body fluids by wicking action even if theliner is in contact with an outer garment or the like capable ofabsorbing such fluids, binding tapes surrounding the opposite ends ofsaid sleeve and the underlying ends of the hydrophilic layer, meanssecured to said binding tapes for detachably connecting said liner to anouter garment, and stitching extending through said sleeve and theenclosed layer of hydrophilic material at spaced apart intervals toprevent the enclosed layers from twisting relative to the sleeve.

2. The liner claimed in claim 1 wherein said stitching is formed fromthread consisting of hydrophobic fibers. l

1. In a garment for incontinent persons, a unitary liner adapted to beattached to the inner surface of the garment to extend from front torear throughout the crotch area, said liner consisting essentially of anelongated, longitudinally seamless, porous tubular sleeve formed from ahydrophobic material, and at least one layer of a hydrophilic materialwholly contained within and surrounded by said tubular sleeve, saidtubular sleeve being in flattened condition with the layer ofhydrophilic material lying in essentially flat condition within saidflattened sleeve and substantially coextensive therewith, whereby saidporous hydrophobic sleeve permits body fluids to pass therethrough forabsorption by said enclosed layer of hydrophilic material and at thesame time acts as an enclosing barrier effective to prevent thedischarge of the contained body fluids by wicking action even if theliner is in contact with an outer garment or the like capable ofabsorbing such fluids, binding tapes surrounding the opposite ends ofsaid sleeve and the underlying ends of the hydrophilic layer, meanssecured to said binding tapes for detachably connecting said liner to anouter garment, and stitching extending through said sleeve and theenclosed layer of hydrophilic material at spaced apart intervals toprevent the enclosed layers from twisting relative to the sleeve.
 2. Theliner claimed in claim 1 wherein said stitching is formed from threadconsisting of hydrophobic fibers.